PMFORUM Breaking News
Breaking News in the Project Management World
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Projects funded for Environmental Clean-up in Azerbaijan
World Bank has announced funding approval of $164 million for three projects under the Absheron Rehabilitation Program (ARP) to improve the environmental situation in Absheron Peninsula, home to many in the Republic of Azerbaijan. These projects will help rehabilitate land polluted by onshore oil production in Absheron, clean and safely dispose radioactive waste from defunct iodine enterprises, and improve management of solid waste in the Baku metropolitan area.
"These three projects are a part of a historical effort Azerbaijan is undertaking to improve the ecological situation of the Absheron Pennisula, and particularly to bring ecological conditions in Baku to European standards. The World Bank is very honored to participate in this effort,” says Gregory Jedrzejczak, Country Manager for Azerbaijan.
Most of Azerbaijan’s industrial potential is concentrated in the Absheron Peninsula, which also is one of the oldest oil producing regions in the world. Decades of industrial operations without proper care for the environment have left about 30,000 hectares of land in the peninsula polluted by oil products and various industrial waste. Moreover, the weak solid waste management system is unable to collect and dispose of any more than 60 percent of solid waste produced in the area. These factors pose serious health risks, and limit expansion of two major cities situated in the peninsula – Baku and Sumgayit, as they are ringed by the polluted zones.
"The Absheron Environmental Program is one of the most comprehensive and ambitious environmental rehabilitation programs in the region and these three projects are part of series of projects being developed by the government to address multiple environmental concerns in the greater Baku area,” said Aniruddha Dasgupta, the leader of the team that worked on the three projects,.
The Absheron Environmental Program has been prepared in response to the Government’s Environmental Action Plan and consists of the following three projects:
The World Bank is a source of financial and technical assistance to developing countries around the world. It consists of two unique development institutions owned by 185 member countries—the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA). The IBRD focuses on middle income and creditworthy poor countries, while IDA focuses on the poorest countries. Together they provide low-interest loans, interest-free credit and grants to developing countries for education, health, infrastructure, communications and many other purposes. Established in 1944 as the original institution of the World Bank Group, IBRD is structured like a cooperative that is owned and operated for the benefit of its 185 member countries. Established in 1960, the IDA aims to reduce poverty by providing interest-free credits and grants for programs that boost economic growth, reduce inequalities and improve people’s living conditions. For more information, visit www.worldbank.org.
Most of Azerbaijan’s industrial potential is concentrated in the Absheron Peninsula, which also is one of the oldest oil producing regions in the world. Decades of industrial operations without proper care for the environment have left about 30,000 hectares of land in the peninsula polluted by oil products and various industrial waste. Moreover, the weak solid waste management system is unable to collect and dispose of any more than 60 percent of solid waste produced in the area. These factors pose serious health risks, and limit expansion of two major cities situated in the peninsula – Baku and Sumgayit, as they are ringed by the polluted zones.
The Absheron Environmental Program has been prepared in response to the Government’s Environmental Action Plan and consists of the following three projects:
- The Contaminated Sites Rehabilitation Project will clean-up two former iodine production sites in Ramany and Surakhani; build a special radioactive materials storage facility; carry out national mapping of naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM); and develop and partially implement a plan to clean 1,000 hectares of land. (WB loan of $74.50 million);
- The Large Scale Oil Polluted Land Clean-up Project will help the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) to carry out a large-scale cleanup of oil polluted land by providing soil cleaning equipment. (WB Loan of $60 million);
- The Integrated Solid Waste Management Project will help to build the capacity of a new Solid Waste Management Company, improve the existing official solid waste disposal site and close and clean-up informal dumps. The project will also supply waste collection equipment to five suburban districts of Baku. (WB Loan of $29.5 million).
The World Bank is a source of financial and technical assistance to developing countries around the world. It consists of two unique development institutions owned by 185 member countries—the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA). The IBRD focuses on middle income and creditworthy poor countries, while IDA focuses on the poorest countries. Together they provide low-interest loans, interest-free credit and grants to developing countries for education, health, infrastructure, communications and many other purposes. Established in 1944 as the original institution of the World Bank Group, IBRD is structured like a cooperative that is owned and operated for the benefit of its 185 member countries. Established in 1960, the IDA aims to reduce poverty by providing interest-free credits and grants for programs that boost economic growth, reduce inequalities and improve people’s living conditions. For more information, visit www.worldbank.org.
